Well, he was Speaker of the House and was involved with those “students” (doncha know...) who were there, on-site, for the duration of the hostage-taking.
I don’t think he pushed any Americans around, but he was involved in the actual event itself. At least that’s what I’ve heard before... (along with “Ima-nut-job”...).
Of course, this could just be someone pulling people's legs.